ASK Italian - Marlborough — Restaurant in England

Came in at 3pm on Saturday with my partner and her two children having booked. One table was occupied. We were greeted by a man who was looking somewhere else as he said something to us. I said "were you speaking to us?" Not sure what he replied. He directed us to a table a foot away from the till and bar staff entrance. I asked if we could be moved. I said I felt too close to the till and bar (we would've been walked past about 10 times a minute). I suggested a table nearby (still in an area that looked filthy as it hadn't been cleaned or tidied after what had obviously been a party. It looked like a bomb had gone off!). "That's been booked" said the complete idiot. I replied that I had booked too! Reluctantly we were seated there. By now I wanted to leave badly and go to Pizza Express, also horrible but maybe not quite as much so. Hilariously, soon after our food came some off duty (I assume) staff came and sat at the table I'd declined and scoffed what looked like a large amount disgusting Greggs food!!😂 The rest went ok, the food was ok, I wanted two more Proseccos but no one was around or looking at us but finally I attracted someone's attention. This was my first visit in a long time as even 10 years ago it was staffed by people who looked as though they hated being there and were jealous of the customers who could afford the ridiculous prices. A good idea would be to pay decent older experienced staff who enjoy working in the industry. I'll never ever eat in this or any one of these awful...

Met a friend for dinner. I was early, they seated me, but then I was quite disappointed that no one asked if I wanted a drink and/or appetiser while I waited. After 20 minutes, I gave up and ordered from the self-service scanner on the table (bear in mind people all around me were being served by friendly staff). I order a glass of Sauvignon Blanc and some Rosemary bread while I waited, both were good. I did really like the bread, although the cup with oil and balsamic was so tiny it was impossible to dip and reach the vinegar. When my friend arrived we again, waited and waited. Finally ordering again on the app. She had the SLOW-COOKED BEEF PAPPARDELLE and really enjoyed it, saying the beef was very tasty. I had the NEW PESTO STRACCIATELLA TAGLIATELLE (V) which lacked flavour. This may have been because the pasta was poorly drained before tossing and so the pesto sauce was a thin soup in the bottom of the bowl. The stracciatella was a small drizzle of about 1 teaspoon on top even though the menu suggested it was a feature of the meal and the lemon zest was non existent. For £34, I could have had a much better meal at any number of places! I can't see...

I don’t usually write reviews, but this experience deserves a warning to others.

Let me start with the only positive thing I can say: the sparkling water and the lemonade had a decent amount of bubbles. That’s it. That’s where the compliments end.

The food was truly awful, a complete insult to Italian cuisine. The calzone had no flavour whatsoever, just an overpowering taste of smoked paprika powder and chili. The filling might as well have been air.

The lasagne? Sweet. Not “a hint of sweetness”, actually sweet. Ragù is supposed to be a savoury meat sauce, not some kind of sugary tomato mush. No depth, no richness, just confusion on a plate. No Italian would accept this.

The Bolognese pasta was bland beyond belief. Absolutely no flavour, just a strange mix of herbs that somehow managed to taste like nothing at all. Not bad in the traditional sense, just completely lifeless. Like food that gave up halfway through being food.

And then you look at the prices. For this? Exorbitant. I left feeling ripped off and genuinely...